Before The Reign
by 8yet8eyf8wefywe8f8gygysy8y
Summary: Twilight awakens on a distant place & finds a old city with a tale of war that changes her world.
1. Introduction

Twilight's vision was a soft white haze. She thought she saw heat rising off of the ground, at her eye level. Taking a deep breath, Twilight inhaled a puff of dust; coughing a dry wheeze. The heat beat down on her, weighing her fragile body down on the musty concrete. Twilight squinted at the sunlight, she was going to have to lift herself up sooner or later. If she didn't, the heat would definitely get to her. Twilight gazed at the sun, which she swore was brighter than usual.

_...__Come__ on __Twilight__, __pick__ yourself __up__...__  
><em>

Struggling, Twilight managed to shakily stand on all fours. As the conscious tide flowed back into Twilight's mind, so did the shock. The dazed unicorn tried to recall what had transpired. A flurry of fire was all that came to mind. An explosion.

…_.__How __did __that __get __me __here__?__ Where __is __here__?...  
><em>

Twilight quickly examined her immediate surroundings, unkempt concrete and signs littered the path. Around that, there was nothing but arid desert. Twilight noticed that out of the numerous signs that decorated the road, one was still up on its pedestal. Half hanging, she had to turn her sideways to read it.

"Welcome to beautiful Volaré, Aerocastalia!"

…_I __wonder __where__... __that__... __is__...-?..._

Behind the sign, white and grey blobs started to come into focus, becoming more defined as Twilight's vision returned.

Shimmering towers of glass and metal sparkled in the distance. More materialized into view. Then even , a panorama of structures flooded Twilight's eyes. It was when she gasped silently, that Twilight realized how deathly quiet it was.

_...__Something __is __definitely __wrong __here__..._

A long winding road lay neglected before Twilight, carving a path through the desert towards the city. She looked down the opposite side of the road, nothing but endless waste greeted her. The choice was clear, the only way she was going to survive was to make for 'Volaré', and fast; lest this heat claim her. The silence was broken by the sound of the gentle clack of hooves against stone, starting their way towards the strange settlement.

After a long while of trodding through the intense desert heat, Twilight came to an underpass. Under the shade of the bridge was a lush plethora of vines, and that only meant one thing to the exhausted unicorn.

_...__Water__... _

Galloping clumsily towards the shade of the underpass, Twilight spotted a flicker of light reflected from some water. The protection of the stone from the receding sun washed over her being. Stumbling through the hanging foliage, Twilight collapsed at the edge of the muddy puddle. She took drawn out sips, savoring every precious drop. After a few minutes Twilight was drunk from her excessiveness, but her dehydration had been sufficiently addressed. She lay there for a few seconds longer before rolling over and looking up at the foliage. In the leaves she saw some delicious olives hanging just above her head.

Twilight slowly shook her water induced stupor, bringing herself at mouth level with the olives. Presently she wrapped her snout around one of the plump fruit, and with a small tug, it snapped loose from the vine. Twilight sat back down, letting her mind wander while she ate.

_...__How __far __am__ I __from__ Ponyville__? ..._

No amount of olives were going to drown out Twilight's increasing worries.

_...__I __hope __Spike __is __alright__- ...__what__ was__ that __explosion__?..._

Sighing, Twilight moved her eyes to the glaring desert outside the shade.

_...__How__ did __it __get__ me __here__? ...__Where __is __everypony __else__?..._

Twilight righted herself, looking over the vast empty expanse. The sun was starting to lower towards the buildings and Twilight realised she was still no where near this 'Volaré'. Noticing this change in the time, she decided that the best course of action would be to teleport to the city.

_...__There__'__s __no__ way __I__ would __be__ able __to__ navigate __this __terrain __at __night__..._

Gaging the distance from the underpass to the downtown, Twilight doubted her ability.

_...__I __hope __I__ can__ make __it __that __far__..._

Twilight trotted out a small ways into the late-afternoon sunlight, and prepared herself for the leap. Closing her eyes, Twilight concentrated on her horn; the raw element surrounding her. Projecting her vision to the skyscrapers in the distance, she opened her eyes. In an instant, Twilight left the bridge behind.

Materializing, Twilight let her eyes adjust from the bright flash of magic.

"I did it..."

All around great glass monoliths shot skyward. The reflection of the early evening sun danced off their sleek surfaces. The reflection of the sunbeams illuminated the showpiece of the square; a magnificent metal monument. A pegasus standing tens of feet tall was poised in mid flight, adorned with what seemed to be an armour of sorts. Wonderment filled Twilight's eyes, the scene was of a scale she was completely unfamiliar with, it humbled her. Her gaze fell to the statue's grand pedestal, where a large tarnished plaque declared the words:

To Commemorate Sierra 'Fireheart' Fierro Ten Years' Rule

Savior Of All Equusara. Chief Marshal Of Aerocastalia

On This Four Thousandth Two Hundred And Fifty Third Year, Anno Domina.

"What a Strange name..." Twilight scrunched her nose up. "I mean 'Fireheart' seems perfectly normal but what's with the other parts?" She double checked the date, "and that date _has_ to be wrong. It's the 1,001st year, not four thousand something!" Twilight spun around to face the rest of the square; "And where is everypony!" her voice echoed of the buildings, reverberating back momentarily. Twilight was still utterly alone, and the silence was starting to get to her.

"I-...I can't be alone, I just can't be! There has to be somepony here, it's impossible, there has to be! If there's nopony here how can I get back! Is anypony alive? Dead! Anypony, anypony at all! Where are you! Where did you go? Where did you go! Where did everypony go!"

Twilight spun into a confused fury, screaming at the buildings all around her. She wandered the square in a trance, the student understood absolutely nothing about this alien place; and she was trapped here. The thought that she would never see another face again in her lifetime broke her. The thought that she would die here and rot into dust here broke her, and the thought that there would be no trace of her ever existing; broke her.

Finally, it was too much for Twilight to handle. Collapsing, she dug her hoof into the concrete; her fear at a boiling point. Damning the heavens, she bellowed;

"Send me a sign! Give me answers!"

A deafening ring snapped the distraught unicorn to her senses. Opening her eyes, Twilight found herself on the steps of one of the buildings in the square. Directly in front of her snout, was a rusted metal object, jutting out of the cracked stone stairs. Twilight picked herself from the staircase, and took a step back. Wiping the tears from eyes, she saw a sign above the entrance way that had the same texture as the object.

'olaré State Archives'

The capital 'V' had fallen loose and crashed down into the marble below. A few steps more, and Twilight would have been a pony pancake. Shaking, she laughed nervously at her incredible luck. Twilight's amusement stopped momentarily, and she cracked a smile.

"Wait a second... archives? I guess I did ask for a sign..." she chuckled again. Suddenly the word clicked, "Archives... Archives, archives equals library!" The smile grew wider on her face. "And library equals answers!" With renewed vigor, Twilight cantered up the grand entrance way and into the building.

The lobby of the archives was comfortably spacious. Although the furniture and the rest of the corresponding decor was faded, Twilight was just glad to see any kind of place to sleep which wasn't a pile of rocks. The walls were painted a milky white, which lead up to a grand dome ceiling. Carved inside was a stylized globe, depicting continents and numerous seas; the likes of which she had never seen before. Taking up most of the room was bookshelves upon bookshelves of slender silver hardcover books. Greeting Twilight at the entrance, was the reception desk.

Twilight's curiosity rendered her immobile for a moment, unable to decide where to start searching for information first. Then something caught her eye, a closed book on the reception table glowed faintly. Twilight levitated the sleek object towards her, and holding it aloft at her side, made her way towards a comfy looking sofa in the corner of the room.

It felt good to sink back into a relaxing piece of furniture again. Twilight almost couldn't believe it but with book in hoof, she was unwinding. Opening the thin metal cover, a screen presented itself- a pseudo-paper filled the previously black space. The book seemed odd to Twilight. Nonetheless the student made herself ready to learn, propping her head up against the arm of the sofa.

._..__So__, __what __are __you __going __to __teach __me__?..._

A single word shone:

* * *

><p><strong>CONCORD<strong>

* * *

><p>A history of the new, free Equusara<br>for whom it may concern.

by Rupert Blake

**Dedication**

To all those who sacrificed in the quest for concord:

Mattéo Olivera  
>Hel Olivera<br>Matilda Celestia  
>Annabelle Bennett<br>Arthur Bartolome  
>Ezariah Nox<br>Sierra Fierro  
>Viktor Tetrakov<br>Izo Sakai  
>Benito Machiavelli<br>Takeshi Hondo  
>Benjamin Bradley<br>Juan Roxo

* * *

><p>"The reins of power lie within Canterlot." - Che<p>

* * *

><p><strong>INTRODUCTION<strong>

* * *

><p>A pegasus rocketed through the window of the target structure, her force knocking out the electrical grid. A few moments later, the resulting sonic boom shook the building, shattering the lights. The thermal-vision flickered on with a high pitch squeal, allowing her gaze to pierce through the thick layer of concrete dust. Seeing no immediate heat signatures, the pegasus quickly searched for a tactical vantage point in the dark room.<p>

She silently galloped towards the door, her streamline armour contouring to her light frame. Her heavy breathing muffled by an oxygen mask, covered by an aerodynamic visor; and a suitably similar metal helmet. The pilot's eyes had a perfect view from all around. Despite that, not a single part of her was exposed to the outside world.

She activated her microphone with a crackle, speaking clearly and precisely through the heavy breaths: "Hotel Echo Lima to MCOM, landed in projected quadrant of target building. Negative on OPFOR in quadrant, over."

An authoritative stallion responded; "Commodore Hel, this is SOCOM Niner speaking. Your orders are as follows; you are to secure and hold the communications command console, located on the seventh story of the complex, until the conflict has come to a close. Our ground forces have pushed a couple of Terry fire-teams into taking refuge inside the structure. They know we can not shell it, neutralize them if possible as a secondary objective. However, it is vital that the Command Console stay within our control, else the enemy learns the location of our forward munitions facility. You have been given clearance level six, your course of actions is of your discretion. SOCOM out."

Hel listened closely for the crackle of gunfire. A series of muffled shots off in the night was all she heard, none of those contacts seemed close. She thought of the fire-teams who had made the building their shelter; probably holed up somewhere near the command console with standard Terranian issue assault weaponry. Nothing Hel couldn't handle, but as she opened the door and trode into the corresponding hallway. she remained wary. One shot in the right place is deadly no matter what.

Switching to night-vision, Hel cautiously made her way through the corridors of the Relay. Galloping through; Hel noticed this station had been abandoned in a hurry, everything was still neat, tidy, and in order. The battle raging outside must have scared the occupants out rather quickly.

Then, something stood out from the monotony of the hallways; blood. There was no way the ground forces had advanced into the building already, and they were rarely as violent as to decorate the walls with blood. It looked like somebody had been dragged along the wall; leading to a closed door at the end of the hallway. Hel made ready her wits, and started towards it, every muscle in her body was ready to be attacked, or to launch one. Adopting a low stance, she carefully slunk up to the door. There she saw that there was blood oozing out from underneath the entrance. She took a position at the side of the door, and readied her wrist-magnum. She pushed the door open from around the corner, as to not be blown away as soon as she touched the entrance. The door swung slowly open, Hel braced for gunfire, but no sound came from the room. She peered around the corner, her heart racing now.

Hel entered the room to get a look, there lay a Terranian soldier face first on the floor, soaking in his own blood. Hel locked the door and turned her attention to the dead pony. He was armed with four different rifles, in typical earth pony fashion. He had all the markings of an average Coalition G.I.; but there was no damage to his back armour. The attacker took this trooper head on. She turned over the lifeless soldier, and was taken aback by how many wounds this stallion had sustained. Everywhere he was decorated with cuts and bruises, and what seemed to be an impale entry point in his chest; that had broken clean through his armour. Even stranger still, was the fact that the flesh was cauterised. Hel scanned the room for evidence of what might have killed him.

Rows of tall machines lined the walls. Their lights were on, surviving the EMP. Military information storage was one of the few technologies to be deemed worthy of EMP shielding. Hel left the body behind to investigate the aisles.

"**CAUTION: ENVIRONMENTAL TEMPERATURE SPIKE DETECTED. ADVISE: DO NOT REMOVE FLIGHT-GEAR IN THIS AREA.**" The suit blurted. The many fans that spotted the servers were stationary, it would only be a matter of time before overheating would set in and knock them out. Hel combed the paths through the heat of the server room, searching for any sign of the aggressor's weapon. Aisle after aisle, the corridors were empty. It wasn't until she had reached the very last row that she noticed a change. A single cable hung out of place. Turning the corner of the row, there was what seemed to be a makeshift bed, and a neatly piled stack of empty food cans. Someone had made these servers their home, at least for a short while. Other than the basics of sleeping and eating, there was nothing of interest to be found in this little "encampment".

Hel quickly made her way back to the body, giving it another once over. "And there's no bullet wounds..." Hel trailed off while muttering to herself, there was evidence of a third party here. There was only one force that used firearms second to unconventional weapons. Activating her radio, Hel spoke quickly; "Hel to MCOM, I've found a Terranian casualty, one of the fire-squad it looks like. His wounds are... unusual to say the least. A large cauterised entry point, cuts on almost all exposed skin and excessive bruising. I'm not sure what to tell you guys, I've never seen anything like it. It's definitely not any of our tech though. I'm relaying the image now."

A flash emitted from Hel's helmet. "We'll run it by the medical ward Hel, continue on with your objective. We will inform you of what caused his death as soon as possible, SOCOM out." The radio stallion's voice faded back into static. Suddenly sounds of gunfire erupted a few floors below, followed by the resounding thump of a grenade. BLUFOR was making their way into the building, fighting a good number of Terry along the way no doubt.

_clank __clank__ -__KA__-__BOOM__! - __CLANK_

The floor shook, and the servers turned off in an instant. Hel froze, a muffled scream haunted the outside hallway as something had crashed through the ceiling into the hallway outside.

A warped female voice jested;

"**WHAHAHAHAHA... Aha- ha ha... ooh. Build a pony a fire, and he'll be warm for a day...**" The distinctive whir of a petrol gauge filled the air. "**_Set_ a pony on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.**"

The screaming transformed into a frantic shriek, as a terrifying noise came from the other side of the door... like a small jet engine had ignited. A bright orange light came from underneath the door, and the blood there began to boil. The light faded, a series of loud clangs following shortly after. As the sound grew distant, Hel steeled her nerves.

"**CRUISE MISSILES ARMED.**"

Bursting through the door, Hel was ready to send the enemy sky high. Instead, she was met with a hallway set ablaze. The thick smell of napalm pierced even her suit's filter. Burning rubble was trickling from a large hole in the ceiling. Something had come through from the floor above, something heavy. Hel was somewhat relieved she had avoided whatever created this mess. Looking on the floor she saw the helmet laying there, The smashed large visor of standard Aerocastalian design. Hel nudged the helmet on its side, examining the back. "897th Flight Commandos". Whoever this was, they made a Commando beg for his life. Not an easy feat. And with a flamethrower like that, one could easily hold any room in this entire building, the armour permitting for the temperature of course.

Hel decided there had been enough time wasted on secondary objectives, it was time to make for the command console. And fast, there was a good chance that whatever cooked the commando would be heading that way as well. Only a few flights of stairs remained between Hel and her target.

Hel bolted through the inferno, wasting her precious internal oxygen supply was not an option. Turning the corner out of the blaze, she propelled herself into the stairwell making full use of her wings. Suddenly a spray of bullets grazed the head of her helmet.

"This is Fireteam Alpha, we have Contact! Three floors ahead, potential special forces!"

Automatic guns riddled the stone walls around her, chipping the plaster off of it. This was too close for comfort. Hel had nearly reached the console's floor and was not interested in taking on a bunch of goons once she got there; that would compromise the equipment. Their pursuit would have to come to a close quickly, but there was no way she could take on an entire fireteam by herself. As the bullets bounced off her armour Hel remembered the present she had planned for the flamethrower owner. Not enough to take out the whole squad - But it would be enough to stop them in their tracks. Galloping past one of the support pillars she chose her target.

Approaching the next floor, Hel shifted her weight; spinning around on her back leg and flung backwards up the last staircase. She took aim, the small missile presenting itself from her wrist. The first soldier was hot on her heels and had just reached the support column, right into her sights. Hel waited half a second, letting the enemy draw even closer to her target and putting just a little more distance between her and the damage the explosion would cause.

"**WARNING: DANGER CLOSE. ADV**-"

"Shut up."

The missile launched off Hel's wrist, soaring through the air for a split-second before annihilating the support beams, saturating the stairwell with fire. She flew through the door at the top floor, knocking it clean of its hinges. The flames were not a moment behind her, licking at her hooves. Scorching the paint off her shoes. The crackle of gunfire had been replaced with the crumble of burning rubble.

Hel dusted herself off and cantered down the corridor - There was no where else to go in this hallway than to the control room. Catching her breath, Hel examined the room. The centre itself was adorned with all different types of monitors and screens, all for what seemed individual purposes. In the middle was a large situation table, which glowed a gentle orange. The console room had been protected by EMP shielding as well, although all the screens shone with static. All except one. Hel trode closer to the array of displays to get a closer look at the functioning set. The screen was too bright for her night-vision, Hel switched it off , letting her eyes adjust to the dimly lit setting. There on the monitor was an image of the gruesome server room.

"There's that sold-"

The click of a rifle bolt being pulled back rang through the room. "Turn around. Slowly. I saw what you did out there." came a posh voice from the back of the room.

…._clank_...

"I have seen what you are capable of, you possess the capacity to end my life." the voice continued.

_Clank__-_

"So tell me, why should I allow you to continue to draw breath?"

_CLANK__-!_

"That clanking sound for one thing. I thought you'd have seen that on one of these cameras."

_**CLANK**__**.**_

"Seen what?"

_-__BOOM__!_

The back wall of the command centre blew outwards sending splinters of wood from desks near it. Hel acted with precision. Hovering over the command console she drew both of her magnums and turned to face the aggressors. Dust from the explosion filled the room, effectively blinding her. Suddenly, the dust turned a light grey. The electromagnetic pulse had worn off, the lights had come back online. Hel waited for shots, napalm, or any weapon to start off the shootout. But as the dust started to settle, there was only the sound of the computers in the room.

Hel's left gun was trained on an unusual foe. An Equestrian, clad in urban camouflage from head to hoof. Her visor was completely black, the horn enclosed in a metal shell. A rifle levitated perfectly still by her side, aimed at Hel's head. The unicorn had a spear of magic hoisted, ready to launch at what came through the wall.

She shifted her gaze to the second figure. Terranian. A towering six foot tall wall of red steel; this pony stood on two legs. The helmet was a full sheet of metal, with a jaw-plate bolted on; an enormous smile spread across it. Orange eyes glared from the suit, like two smaller visors. A slight trickle of red ran down from them. The massive upper-body counterbalanced by two sooty napalm-throwers. One for each hoof. The pre-ignitors growled to life.

All three of them looked from side to side at each other. Each of them waited for the others to make a wrong move which would leave them open for attack. The first one to move would of been gunned down so fast they wouldn't even have had the time to regret their decision. But, the moment seem to hang, like time was standing still for this room. The only thing that could change this was some outside force.

The intercom system screeched, cutting through the intense silence. A familiar voice came through;

"Dear soldiers of the Eight Hundred Ninety-Seventh Flight Commandos, this is your Commandant; Samuel Avalos. I am currently transmitting on all frequencies, from Los Pegasi. Circumstances that extend beyond the boundaries of this conflict have compromised the security of mainland Aerocastalia, and it is with great sorrow that I regret to inform you that I have deemed the operation: terminated. The Republic sends its most heartfelt regards for your unwavering support in the defence of her territory, and sovereignty. Your families have already been informed of your sacrifice for our cause. Equestria no puede tomar el cielo por nosotros... Adiós, mis soldados."

The transmission cut to the Aerocastalian anthem. Hel knew exactly what was to follow a message like that. She took a deep breath, and switched to her open microphone. Time for negotiation.

"Look, if you two want to live, you'll listen carefully. In a couple of minutes there's going to be nothing left of this island, nothing but a smouldering crater. Command's going to wipe it off the face of Equusara. Now, we haven't shot each other. Yet. Now, when I land, I expect not to die." Hel retracted her wings, landing on all fours with a clack. "...and lower the guns already, we don't have time for that." Slowly, the two lowered their firearms, as Hel began to trod over to the unicorn, "You, can you teleport?"

"Of course." she replied.

"How far?"

"Damn far."

"Far enough to get us to the mainland?"

She thought for a moment. "Easily, but why should I bring you two with me?"

"Because we're your only hope of surviving my government once we get there. Unless you're interested in being dissected in some underground lab; you'd better stick with us," Hel shot a look at the metal beast, "That's assuming you're coming along too?"

"**You betcha**." The electronic voice said.

"Then what can you offer?" asked Hel.

"**I can be scary**." the mask's smile seemed to widen.

"Well you've got that down..."

It was then that Hel noticed the gunfire outside had stopped. The hole the Terranian left in the command centre's wall had made some of the room open to the outside night. A yellow glow illuminated the opening. Hel's heart skipped a beat. She wheeled around to face the unicorn.

"Get us out of here!" Hel yelled.

"Where do you-" The unicorn started to ask.

"Get us out of here. NOW!"

The Unicorn's horn began to glow, "Get close..." An audible rumbling shook the foundations of the building. In a flicker of reality, the three disappeared.

A moment later, the structure was no more.


	2. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER I**

* * *

><p>The three lay in a jungle clearing, dazed by their sudden apparition. The night was cool, but the humid air of the rain forest hung deep in their throats immediately. Encased in metal shells, two of them rose decorated in tens of multicoloured lights.<p>

Hel stumbled to her hooves wearing blue colours, and her flight-suit while significantly damaged from combat, glimmered in the soft light. She hastily examined her surroundings noticing the unicorn was unconscious on the ground, breathing sharp and fast. For a brief minute, the two able minded ponies stared into each others helmets, unsure what course of action to take. They were as much strangers to themselves, as to this jungle.

As the earth pony rose, she stood on two legs. The Crimson wall once again presented itself to Hel, the eyes glowed a softer golden colour and the red trickle had disapeared. Tearing her gaze off of the heavily armoured earth pony, Hel rushed over towards the unconscious unicorn, the silence was broken.

"Come on! Get up you idiot! What's wrong with you! I don't want to have to drag you to the hospital, snap out of it!" she shook the unicorn forcefully.

The earth pony pitched in, her face hidden by the menacing helmet, "**I hope you realize we'll be rounded up and slaughtered like pigs if we head to _your_ hospitals, _pegasus_.**" The voice still sounded unnatural filtered through her microphone.

Pretending to ignore the comment, Hel tried to hoist the unicorn over her back; but the armour proved too heavy for her frame.

The earth pony raised a hoof in Hel direction. "**Especially if we bring the likes of _her_ along. Besides, how am I supposed to trust someone I don't even know the name of?**"

"I didn't kill you. Shouldn't that be trustworthy enough?" She retorted frantically. "Now look, we can talk this out once we get some treatment... but we have to trust each other!" Hel nudged the incapacitated unicorn urgently again. "Hey, come on. Wake up!" The prodding yielded no success.

In her frustration, Hel slammed a metal hoof into the earth. She sat back on the dirt closing her eyes tightly, trying her best to keep the recent events from flooding her mind's eye. The three of them had escaped the Communications Relay. Only just. The flight sergeant's briefing echoed in in her brain;

"There will be Fourteen Thousand of the Commandant's  
>finest deployed to Grid 3. One of you does not exist."<p>

Fourteen thousand on her side alone, countless more on the other. Every last one, incinerated by that malevolent flash. She shuddered painfully, the shock of the situation was setting in, and the thought of the entire mission brought her to the verge of tears.

"It's a good thing I don't exist." she shakily whimpered.

The earth pony walked towards Hel detaching her shoe with a twist, as the pneumatic locks gave way. She placed an unarmoured hoof on the distraught pegasus' shoulder.

"**Look on the bright side, at least you didn't end up one of them. You're still breathing. Focus on that**."

If there was one thing Hel was doing a lot of, it was breathing. She took in one long drawn breath. Calming herself, Hel felt obliged to let some information pass to her ally,

"Thank you... the names Hel by the way."

The earth pony cocked her head to the side a little,

"**That's an odd name... but, a name is a name I guess. I'm Annabelle, Annabelle Bennett.**"

Annabelle picked up her shoe, and placed it back on with a clank.

"**You got a last name?**"

"Yeah, Olivera."

Hel motioned her head in the direction of the unicorn,

"Just check up on the sparkler, I need a minute..."

Annabelle turned her attention away from Hel, kneeling down to scan the Unicorn, A single laser shot down from her helmet onto the wounded unicorn's forehead. Tiny letters filled her visor, Annabelle relayed them. "**The scans tellin' me she's just really low on energy, needs some rest is all. There won't be a need for that trip to the hospital.**"

Annabelle knew that the unicorn was armed with more than just her horn. The rifle lay next to her. Annabelle gave the weapon a good hard knock, the clip loosened. Drawing a small knife, she made a series of quick incisions into the rifle. Shortly after, the clip came out with ease.

Examining the clip, Annabelle came to a conclusion; "**A sparkler weapon... useless to us.**" She put the clip in a small satchel on her side.

Hel turned to face the Equestrian. She twisted the Unicorn's mask off, revealing pale white skin and a mane of icy blue, white streaks accentuated her hair's details .

A soft light emitted from the unicorn's eyes, which were emblazoned with tribal looking tattoos.

"Why are her eyes glowing?" Hel said noting the glow.

Annabelle scrolled through the information her suit had provided her. "**I don't have the slightest idea, and neither does the scanner.**"

Hel sat down in the dirt impatiently, it would have been a bonus had the Equestrian been awake, but with her like this, their mobility would be reduced to a crawl. Hel quickly removed her helmet, placing it on a nearby rock. Her Navy and white mane glowed a small bit in the moonlight. Revealing her dark skin matching her mane underneath.

"**Well, if we're gonna spend the night here, I'd think a fire'd be nice...**" Annabelle suggested.

"It doesn't seem like we have much choi-"

Hel's ear twitched, a frequency just within hearing range tickled her mind. She thought she had heard that sound before...

"Do you hear that?" Hel asked quietly.

"**...Hear what?**" Annabelle was preparing to light a small patch of earth ablaze.

Hel listened harder, the high-pitched squeal was turning into a whine, a sound with which she was all too familiar. Jets.

Hel scrambled off the ground, rushing towards Annabelle. She propelled herself with her wings,

"Get down!"

Hel tackled Annabelle to the forest floor with a resounding thud.

Not a moment later, a deafening scream flooded through the trees. A dozen shadowy figures fast as lightning darted over the canopy, the trees swaying with the force of their velocity. A storm of scared birds bolted away into the night. It took a minute for the sound to dissipate, but eventually the silence of the forest resumed.

Hel was on top of the confused earth pony,

"**Now that was close. Too close for my likin'.**" Annabelle whispered.

"They were looking for us... must have seen the teleport's flash. There has to be a settlement nearby." Hel looked at the sky. "...and had you lit that fire, we would have been up to our necks in pegasus ordnance right about now." She raised herself onto all fours. "You have to be more careful. If the feds found out I'm alive after that little op we just went through, I'm dead for sure. I can't even imagine what they'd do to a Terranian..."

"**Nothing I can't handle, flygirl.**" chuckling, Annabelle sat back up "**I've dished out my fair share of pain.**" Annabelle trode over to where the unicorn lay, and sat with her back against one of the many thick tree trunks. She tinkered with her wrist-controls for a moment, and a glowing rod presented itself from the device. A light source.

"**Now come on over here, I wanna show you something.**"

Perplexed, Hel picked up her helmet between her teeth and walked over to the tree.

"This is a better spot for the light, the leaves on the this tree are thick enough to cover the light source. We won't be seen from the sky."

Placing the glowstick on the ground, Annabelle moved over a ways to make room for the pegasus to sit. Hel took her place next to her ally, and moved her emerald eyes from the canopy to Annabelle. "Now what did you want to sh- WHAT THE..-"

Annabelle's smooth mask had been transformed. The eyes were a laser-red, and blood flowed out of them down her helmet's cheeks. Her jawplate once again had a huge smile, the teeth were serraded and they resembled large steak-knives. It was the scariest thing Hel had ever seen, and it was not a foot away from her face. A demon's voice escaped the metal monster's lips,

"**Wanna party?**"

Hel yelped and flung herself from Annabelle back into the darkness, determined to get away from that hellish expression.

A metallic click and a soft giggle came shortly after.

"Oh suga' the look on your face was priceless!"

A sweet accent replaced the daemonic voice that was present a moment ago. An Applasian accent.

Hel turned her head to face it, and instead of that horrible metal visage, there was a pony rolling in laughter kicking up small clouds of dirt; utterly helmetless. Annabelle's orange skin, curly blond hair, and deep-set cobalt eyes came together to make the most harmless looking equine Hel had ever seen. Annabelle's laughing subsided, and she patted the ground next to her, inviting the startled pegasus to sit once again.

"Come on now, I don't bite hun,"

Hel was reluctant to move. Annabelle moved her helmet to the side of the tree.

"I promise not to do it again... now take a seat!"

Hel cautiously took her original position, still shaken by Annabelle's 'joke'. "How... o-or why did you do that?" Hel stammered.

"Well I did say that I dish out my fair share of pain didn't I? Half of it's physical... and the other half is the psychological. The "boogie-pony" part I like to call it."

"_Hilarious__._"

Annabelle picked up Hel's helmet, and begun examining it.

"and I can tell you about that, but first I wanna hear about you; what's your story, hun?"

Hel sighed sullenly and shook her head, "It isn't a happy story really, but I'll tell you if you want."

Annabelle continued to rotate the helmet, "I'm all ears."

Hel made herself comfortable, took a single deep breath, and began;

"My father and I used to run a bakery on the west coast, a couple hours flight south from Volaré. It's a little place called Bambaleo, it has perfect weather, and we were right on the beach too. The west coast of Aerocastalia is simply too beautiful for words. Just a little red house. We woke up, sold our stuff, went flying... it was pretty easy living. Then..."

"Then you got invited to a hush-puppy, big shot, special operations unit?"

Hel stopped in astonishment, "How did you know I wa-"

Annabelle pointed to an insignia on the back of the flight-helmet, a winged bolt. "From baker... to Wonderbolt?" Annabelle smiled slyly. "You're_good_. Care to share your secret?"

Hel rubbed her eyes, preparing to convey the rest of her story,

"Well, it was a couple of years back when the commandant sent out the occupation reassignment letters. One day we got one in the mail, said dad would be working in a munitions production plant indefinitely."

Annabelle grew silent.

"A couple of days later, civil defense shows up to take him away. I was on the doorstep watching the officers take him away. It was that moment... that I realized I was never going to see his face again. He was going to die at that plant. I had to do something..." Hel was close to tears now, only just holding them back.

"So I attacked the two of them... I took one by suprise and slammed his face into the hood of their transport, shattered his helmet too. I turned around to fight the next guy, then he pulled a gun and just..."

Hel's body was still, and all of her focus was being spent on preventing an outburst of emotion. She stared at the ground.

"Just what?" Annabelle's smirk faded to concern.

"_Just _murdered him." Hel remained adamant. "The bastard didn't even look at my father when he took his life." Hel's anguish quickly transitioned into a building anger. "The lack of respect..."

"I'm sorry... If ther-"

Hel faced Annabelle, "I'm not finished." she whiped a watery eye, and cleared her throat. "After that, the officer I took out restrained me from behind, I was thrown into the back of the cruiser and taken away. They just left him there, on the curb."

Hel spat, "_Cerdos_..." her anger dissipating. "After I was arrested I was taken in for a week at the Cadena Bloc waiting to be sentenced, all the while being treated like a regular piece of trash. My trial was anything but routine though. I pleaded guilty... and then I brought up my father's murder, let my last name slip. They didn't have a name on file for me, and I refused to give it to them. So they just branded me with my criminal code."

"What's your code then?" Annabelle asked.

Hel spoke aloud "Left shoulder carapace, disengage." Her armour hissed and whined as the pneumatic grips on her metal suit loosened. Hel popped the shoulderpiece off with a flex of her arm, exposing her white skin. Annabelle examined closely. Printed on Hel's shoulder was her criminal code;

"HEL-289-903"

Annabelle put a hoof to her chin, "Then what IS your real first name?"

Hel half heartedly smiled, and looked up at the canopy of the tree.

"It's not important, I live a different life now than I did with my older name. I am a completely changed person, that's why I choose not to use it... the judge wasn't buying it though. He turned the court into an interrogation room to try and force my first name out of me. I didn't give it to them, I'd have died before that. Then... he did something extremely odd. Originally I was sentenced to life in prison, but after that unsuccessful interrogation, he re-sentenced me to 20 years service in the Commandareate Air Force, Los Pegasi division. At the Capital AFB, right in the heart of the military."

Hel chuckled, "That was the biggest mistake of his life. I knew that from the moment I stepped off that prison plane, I was going to turn my training against the government. The fact that I'm sitting next to you right now Annabelle, is a manifestation of that. it wasn't easy at the base though, I had a lot of things against me. The other cadets, and my 'duties' were always more strenious than everyone elses. But most of all, one commanding officer had it out for me. He tried to frame me for escaping my sentence, assigned more extra hours of training than I can count, and I'm convinced he's been trying to kill me the entire time."

"What kind of training exactly?"

"I was assigned for a new kind of unit, "Thunderbirds" they called us. Our job was to fly at mach speeds, and charge into enemy ranks of the ground. We killed what needed to be killed, and then we got out just as fast as we entered; 'First in, first out.' was our motto."

Hel held up her armoured hooves, "We got the nickname probably because of these,"

A couple of large blades shot out of the armour, pulsing with electricity.

"Turns out I was really good at ramming into things at eight times the speed of sound; good enough to get through Sarge's trials, and land top spot in my class. After that I was invited to be one of their elite. I've spent the entire time thinking of a way to plot against them, but I've never had the means to carry out anything."

Hel retracted the weapons, "I am a Wonderbolt Shocktrooper... or, was until about an hour ago. I flew a few missions for them, and got assigned to this operation."

"Where you met up with me, and what's her face over there. I gotta say, for someone who's supposed to be up in the blue yonder, you pick a mean ground fight flygirl. Had it not been for you, we'd all six hooves under right about now."

Hel adjusted her backs position on the tree trunk and let out a sigh,

"And that's my story so far, but enough about me Annabelle, your turn to start talking."

Annabelle spoke in a light-hearted manner, almost like the cooing of a dove.

"I never knew my parents first of all, got dropped off at an orphanage when I was a youngin' up Bloomberg County way, if that wasn't obvious. I was raised workin' for the food harvestin' industry, much like yourself... except I got the workhorse part of it. Turn the clock back 3 years, the apple harvesting facility gets closed down because of resource allocation-" Annabelle shook her head.

"But it wasn't that simple suga'. Come the last day on the job, I snapped." Annabelle picked up her helmet, and looked into its eyes "There's somethin' you should know about me before I continue on with that, ever heard of a Bouncer before?"

Hel was intrigued now, "Yes of course I have, nothing but myths of ... bleeding eyes, serra-" Hel shot her comrade an astonished expression, to which Annabelle answered with a quaint smile. "Y-you're a bouncer? You? But how? Doesn't that mean you're..-?"

Annabelle rolled her eyes, "Do I _look_ like that to you? Let me finish before you go on blabberin' about falsities Hel, I'm not done either."

"Last day on the job, I took the place hostage; all of it. I'd put the whole thing out of comission, and I took out a platoon of Federal Police along with it. The funny thing is, I don't recall a thing about it, I just woke up on the assembly floor, surrounded by important lookin' special operations. Instead of just killin' me outright, they _offere__d_ me a place among their ranks. And I _do_use that term loosely."

"But why did you hold up the facility? Most ponies would have just found a new job."

"I'm crazy." Annabelle rubbed the disturbing smile on the helmet, "A special kind of crazy. The right kind of crazy for the job at least."

Hel chuckled, "Yeah, you and me both."

* * *

><p>"Spike, take a note. I have discovered that there are unrecorded locations unknown to Equestrian kind. I need you to look up 'Aerocastalia', and I need... you... to- "<p>

Twilight suddenly realized there was no grumbley dragon at her side, and that she was utterly alone in the library's study.

"**One moment please...**"

Twilight jumped, the book just spoke to her.

"**Aerocastalia: The Paradise Continent. The Traditional home of the Aerius Coballus and Vigratus Furtivus, or Pegasus and Zebra races of equine. As of the 4255 Republic Census it is home to 4,498,169,217 ponies. It is mostly consisted of a jungle environment, although the western coast contains a large desert expanse. The Continental Capital is Los Pegasi, also commonly known as the 'Causeway'. Do you want any more specific information?**" It then continued the new information spreading out on the page before her.

Twilight thought about it. "A talking book..."

"**Do you want any more specific information?**"

"Uh... no, thank you." Twilight answered instinctively.

_...__How__ does __a__ pony __talk __to __a __book__?  
><em>

"**Thank you for using the look up system. Returning to previous page.**"

Twilight thought about what just happened for a second.

_I __could __use __this __to __look __up __any__ information __I __want__...__like__ that __date __out __there__._

"What is the Date?"

The book remained silent. Twilight thought what she had done differently this time compared with the last one. The last thing the book said to her went through her head.

_...__Thank__ you __for __using __the __look__ up __system__..._

"Look up, Date."

"**The Current Date is 12th Day. Second Quarter. The year Fifteen thousand and thirty one.**" The screen didn't change at all, stating the date without changing a single word on the page.

"That statue...this place...it is 10,778 years old. How long has this place been abandoned? what happened to everypony?"

Twilight thought of any other information she might want.

"Look up, 'Terranian'."

"**A resident of Terranian Coalition jurisdiction. The term refers specifically to the Fortis Coballus genus of equine, commonly called 'Earth ponies'. Do you want any more information?**"

Puzzled to a small degree, Twilight thought it best to continue on with the recording before asking any more questions.

"No."

"**Thank you for using the look up system. Returning to previous page.**"


End file.
